Dec 12, 2023 - Both Republican and Democratic parties within the Senate and House Agriculture Committees have agreed to extend the 2018 Farm Bill for one year. According to reports, the "extension of the 2018 Farm Bill involves its inclusion in a stopgap spending bill." Released by U.S. House Republicans, this bill intends to extend the 2018 Farm Bill through September 30, 2024. This Farm Bill has had a significant impact on the hemp industry by "de-scheduling commercial hemp production and eliminating hemp from the Controlled Substances Act and has provided much-needed regulation for cannabinoids."

The success of the hemp industry depends largely on the bill's renewal. The extension, while good news, is not "intended as a substitute for passing a comprehensive 5-year Farm Bill" but "leaders of the House and Senate Agriculture Committees have expressed their commitment to working together to accomplish this" in the upcoming year. (Source) "We want to get the Farm Bill done as soon as possible, hopefully before the end of [next] year," Senator Boozman said. "That doesn't preclude us from getting it done [sooner]. But it gives us that time. And it gives the farmers the certainty that they will have a Farm Bill in place."

Sen. John Boozman, R-Ark., is the ranking member of the U.S. Senate Agriculture Committee that holds responsibility for guiding the legislation through the upper chamber. Boozman had previously stated that the extension wouldn't prevent lawmakers from passing a bill sooner than the end of 2024. As far as potential implications to the U.S. hemp industry, one source said industry stakeholders will simply have to wait longer for their concerns with the 2018 version to be addressed. The full continuing resolution, H.R. 4664, can be found here.